


When Honker Met Gosalyn

by AnimationNut



Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991)
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Don't copy to another site, First Meetings, Friendship, Gen, Originally written in 2013, Post-Episode: s01e01-02 Darkly Dawns the Duck, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 19:09:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29987511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnimationNut/pseuds/AnimationNut
Summary: Gosalyn thought the day couldn't get any better than going house hunting with her new dad and his sidekick. Then she found the house of her dreams and met the kid next door.
Relationships: Gosalyn Mallard & Honker Muddlefoot
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	When Honker Met Gosalyn

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Darkwing Duck.

The newly-deemed Gosalyn Mallard bounced eagerly in her seat, her small face pressed against the glass window of Drake Mallard's blue mini-van. Her bright green eyes scanned every passing house, looking intently for any _For Sale_ signs jammed in front yards.

"I can't believe I'm going house hunting with my new dad!"

Drake smiled fondly at the glee in her voice. "I can't believe I'm going house hunting with my new daughter."

It was strange to think that it had only two days since the Taurus Bulba incident. So much had happened in a short amount of time, such as falling in love with the spirited nine-year-old redhead and becoming a civilian once more by day.

"There's one!" Gosalyn suddenly cried. Launchpad McQuack hastily slammed the brakes, screeching to a stop near the curb. Drake yelped as the jolts caused his injuries to flare up with pain.

"Sorry, DW," Launchpad apologized. "The brakes are a little touchy."

"So is my arm," Drake wheezed, gingerly adjusting his wing in the sling.

"C'mon! We're in luck! It's an open house!" Gosalyn said eagerly.

The three filed out of the car. Gosalyn stared at the cream-coloured house and the pinkish roof with an expression of pure delight. "I like it!"

"We haven't even seen the inside!" Drake protested.

"Oh, right."

Gosalyn immediately raced into the house with the two adults following behind. There were only a few other people looking at the house, so there were no wings jostling Drake's tender injuries. The man glanced around critically. The entryway was a small, simple space with enough room for shoes and coats. There was a hallway that stretched to the main living room and kitchen and a set of stairs that led to the bedrooms and bathroom. They explored every room and Drake was hard-pressed to find any issues with the home.

"Can we buy this place? Please? Please?" Gosalyn begged when they finished the tour. "I already have plans on how I want to decorate my bedroom!"

"Slow down, kiddo!" Drake laughed. "I have to call the real estate agent and make a bid first. I want to see how low I can go."

"What will you use the third bedroom for?" Launchpad asked.

Drake arched an eyebrow. "Duh, LP. That'll be your room."

"You mean it?” said Launchpad hopefully. “I get to live with you?"

"Of course. My sidekick needs to be close in case of emergencies."

"Keen gear!" Gosalyn exclaimed, who had taken quite the liking to Launchpad. "We're all gonna be one happy family!"

"If we want to be a happy family in this house, we better get moving." Drake ushered his daughter out the front door with Launchpad following behind. "We don’t someone snagging this from under us.”

"You got it, Dad!" Gosalyn ran over to the van and, as she grabbed the door handle, her gaze flickered across the street. She froze. “No way.”

"What?" Drake asked worriedly, snapping his head about. "What's wrong?"

"There's a kid next door," Gosalyn breathed, eyes wide. "A kid my age!"

"Oh. Well, that's nice. Maybe you can make friends with her."

"Him," Gosalyn corrected.

Drake frowned slightly, unsure how he felt about Gosalyn wanting to make friends with a boy. Any worries he held disappeared completely when he saw who Gosalyn was referring to.

He was a small kid with large red-rimmed glasses. He was sitting on his front porch, a thick book open in his lap.

"It would be so cool to have a friend who lived next door to me," Gosalyn said wistfully.

"What about your friends at the orphanage?" Drake asked carefully. "You can always have them come over."

Gosalyn shrugged. "They all moved away when families came to adopt them. It was kind of an unspoken rule in the orphanage. The friends you make are only your friends up until they get adopted. Then you never see them again. It'd be nice to have a friend who wouldn't leave me."

The sad expression on her face tugged at Drake's heartstrings. "Why don't you go say hello?" he urged gently, pushing his daughter towards the boy.

Brightening, Gosalyn ran over to her potential new friend. "Hi!"

The boy jumped, his book flying off his lap and landing on the concrete front path. He stared up at the unfamiliar girl in surprise. After a moment he gained his bearings and returned the greeting. "Hello."

"I'm Gosalyn Waddle—Mallard," she corrected herself quickly. "I'm Gosalyn Mallard. That's my new dad, Dark—Drake, Drake Mallard. And my friend Launchpad." She pointed at the two men observing from outside the van.

"I'm Herbert Muddlefoot," the boy introduced. "It's very nice to meet you."

Gosalyn wrinkled her beak. "That's a dumb name."

Drake winced at Gosalyn’s loud, unflattering statement. "Not exactly how to make friends," he muttered under his breath.

But Herbert wasn't offended. "I know. But I can't do much about it. My parents named me Herbert and if I want to change my name I have to wait until I'm of legal age."

"You could always give yourself a nickname," Gosalyn suggested. "How about...Herbie? Nah, that's lame. I know! Honker!"

The boy mulled it over. "Actually, that sounds a lot better than Herbert," he admitted. “I like it.”

"Honker it is!" Gosalyn said cheerfully. "We're gonna move in next door to you and I thought I would get a head start on our friendship."

"You want to be friends with me?" Honker asked incredulously.

Gosalyn faltered, a smidgen of doubt curling in her chest. "If...if you want to."

"I'd like that very much," Honker said honestly. "I don't really have friends."

"Neither do I!" Gosalyn said excitedly. "You know what that means?"

"What?"

"We can be best friends!" Gosalyn slung a wing around his shoulders and squeezed. "We'll have a great time! We can go to the movies, go to the arcade, play ball hockey, go skateboarding—I might even get to go to the same school as you! Hey, maybe my dad will take us out for ice cream! _Dad! Can we go get ice cream with my new best friend?_ "

Utterly amused, Drake called back, "Only if his parents say yes."

Taking this as his cue, Honker seized his book and opened his front door. "Mom, can I go get ice cream with my new friend?"

"Best friend,"

"My new best friend?" Honker amended.

"Sure, sweetie!" a kind, female voice answered. “But don’t have too much that you ruin your dinner.”

"I won't, Mom." Honker set his book on a decorative end table and closed the door. Gosalyn grabbed his wing and dragged him towards the two adults.

"Dad! Launchpad! This is Honker Muddlefoot, my new best friend!" Gosalyn said happily. "Honker, this is my dad and Launchpad."

"It's very nice to meet you, sirs," Honker said politely, trying not to stare at Drake’s abundance of bandages and extending the wing Gosalyn wasn't holding to shake.

Drake arched an eyebrow. "A gentleman, eh? Gosalyn could learn some manners from you, kid." He gave Honker's wing a firm shake.

"I like you already, kiddo," Launchpad said cheerfully, pumping Honker's wing up and down next.

Drake rolled his eyes. "You like everybody."

"So, Honk, what kind of ice cream do you like?" Gosalyn asked.

"I'm partial to chocolate swirl, myself," Honker answered.

The redhead positively beamed. "Me too!"

And as Honker climbed into the back of the van with Gosalyn following behind, he realized that in the span of ten minutes he had gotten a new name _and_ a best friend.

What he didn’t know at the time was that he had found a best friend that would stay with him for the rest of his life.


End file.
